CB550/650 Big Bore by paulages

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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
This article, written by forum member Paulages in September 2008, is from the SOHC/4 Tips and Tricks
Forum.
When Honda produced the SOHC CB650, it was immediately following the end of the CB550
production, and it appears that they reused much of the CB550 tooling in making the CB650 to keep costs
down. The resulting improvements I think represented the pinnacle of Honda's SOHC4 design, but
unfortunately the bike was at the end of an era and got little accolade. The port design in the head was
drastically improved from the earlier fours, with short intake runners, a nice wide flat intake port floor,
and less casting mess. The combustion chamber is a hemi design, with nice domed pistons to match.
Honda claimed 50 BHP with the 550 engine, and 62 BHP with the 650. Dyno reports show numbers
more along the lines of 38 BHP and 49 BHP (1979 model) respectively, at the rear wheel. Both engines
have untapped potential, but the 650 in particular I feel has more to give than was offered stock. Porting,
a nice cam, better carbs, and freer-flowing exhaust alone will go a long way with either engine.
The following is a list of all parts I found compatible/incompatible between both engines.
TRANSMISSION
all gears fit both main and countershafts, but the 650 1st gear doesn't mate with the 550 kickstarter
gear
all transmission bearings are interchangeable, though there are some slight differences - the
countershaft needle bearing on the 650 has a small oil pump built into the outer race/casing for
supplying oil to the bearing.
primary shafts are interchangeable, but the assemblies on them must be mated with their stock cases,
as there is a slight difference in spacing between the bearings in the case.
parts of the shift assembly/ bearing retainers on the clutch side are interchangeable, though I see no
advantage to using one over the other.
the clutch baskets are interchangeable, but the primary gear that mates with the clutch driven gear
must match. if using the 650 primary clutch gear with the 550 clutch cover, some material must be
removed from the cover in this area to avoid contact.
the clutch pressure plate needs to match the cover from the same model, as the pushrod assemblies
are different.
ENGINE
both engines use the same hy-vo primary chain
both cranks fit either case
both engines have the same barrel and stud spacing
the slots for the front cam chain guide are in a different location than the 550. all other 650 cam
chain parts work with the 550 case.
the 650 head is considerably different than the 550. a 650 piston won't even come close to fitting in
the 550 head. the 650 head could be used with 550 pistons, though the compression ratio would be
very low without appropriate pistons.
CB650 Combustion Chamber:
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
CB550 Combustion Chamber
If you look closely, you can see how much cleaner the 650 dome is than the 550. the 550 castings can be
unshrouded and look similar.
the 650 pistons (left) are taller than the 550 pistons.
the 650 cam will drop into a 550 head with similar results to a mild street performance cam. the 550
cam sprocket must be used, as will the 650 tach, cable, and cam driven gear.
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
the exhaust port spacing is the same for both engines
'79 & '80 cb650 intake ports will mate with SOHC cb550 and cb750 carbs
ELECTRICAL
the locating pins for the ignition assemblies are 180 degrees apart from each other. The locating pin
for the 550 rotor is also smaller than that of the 650. The 650 uses a larger stud to mount the ignition
rotor, rather than the smaller bolt the 550 uses:
Ignition assembly locating pins
The mounting ring for the 650 base plate is smaller in diameter as well, so the stock ignitions must be
used, unless appropriate modifications are made.
the tapered ends of the cranks that accept the alternator rotors are different. due to casting
differences, the alternator used must match that models cases as well, unless otherwise modified.
Covers
For those of you wanting to dress a 650 to look like a 550:
both ignition covers are interchangeable, but the 650 is much thicker
clutch covers interchange, with the appropriate pushrod assembly used
sump pans interchange; 650 is deeper
alternator covers do NOT interchange
rocker covers do NOT interchange without modification
I hope this list will allow anyone really going through the process of building a 550/650 hybrid to pick
and choose what to use, but I highly recommend testing these things for yourself if you're really going to
get this deep into an engine build.
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
I'll start with what's necessary to go big on the 650, then follow up with the necessary modifications to do
so on a 550 bottom.
Parts List: CB750 cylinder liners, CB750 pistons (or any other pistons with matching wrist pin diameter)
and rings, custom head gasket (cometic.com), and standard gasket and o-rings.
1. Full engine disassembly is necessary. Bag and label everything as if your life depended on it.
2. Remove the cylinder liners. Place the cylinders on the oven at 200 degrees F for 10 minutes or
so. Pull them out when hot, and the liners will come right out. with the weight of the cylinders
on the bottom of the liners (sitting upright), you can usually tap the top of the cylinders with a
rubber mallet, and they fall right off of the liners.
3. The cylinders and top case will both have to be bored out to fit the oversized liners
1. The new liners will have to be machined to the same height and taper at the bottom as the stock
ones. when refitting, it will be necessary to flatten the edges of the flange at the top where they
overlap, as well as machine around the outer two bolt holes and oil passageways.
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
1. If you are using cb750 pistons, the shoulder will be about 1mm too tall, requiring machining to
fit. This will at least allow you to customize your compression ratio and piston geometry. In my
case, we started by turning the pistons down .050", and at a 47 degree angle .020" in from the
shoulder. This fit on the head, but clearances were a little tight. after a little more work, I ended
up with a piston to head (squish) clearance of .027", and a piston to valve clearance of .098"
(intake) and .116" (exhaust).
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
Piston before machining
Pistons after machining
Using a CB550 Bottom End
The same can be done on a 550 using the 650 parts from the crank up, but require a little more work. I'll
start with the necessary, then explain the "electives" i chose to do as well. Everything above applies, with
the following being necessary on top of that:
1. The slots for the front cam chain guide need to be moved forward 16mm
Before Machining
After machining the slots
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
1. The alternator rotor I.D. needs to be opened up to fit on the 650 crank. the angle of the taper is 5
degrees. any competent machine shop can do this easily.
2. The locating pin for the ignition rotor is 180 degrees off, so this must be compensated for in
some fashion. the easiest thing to do is to simply reverse the coil wires. the 650 crank also has a
stud for mounting the rotor, rather than a bolt, and the center of the rotor (stock or dyna) needs
to be drilled out larger to fit. The hole o n the crank for the locating pin on the rotor will have to
be drilled a little larger as well.650 on left, 550 on right:
Drilled out ignition rotor
This is all that is absolutely necessary to fit the 650 crank, barrels, head, etc. onto the 550 lower.
The following are further improvements I made:
1. The 650 has an oiler for both the primary and cam chains, fed off of the main galley in the bottom
case. the adaption is fairly easy, as the 550 already has the mounting point which can be seen on the
right in the second photo.
650 oiler post
Modified 550 oiler post
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
Oiler installed
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2. The 650 clutch gearing is lower, to produce less strain on the clutch and therefore reduce slippage. I
used the 650 clutch basket and then corrected the lower gear ratio at the final drive sprockets. I had
to mill a little material out of the 550 clutch cover to clear the 650 primary clutch gear, as it's a little
larger.
Once everything is mocked up and spun through clearly, the engine is ready for a standard rebuild. don't
cut any corners at this point.
Results
In addition to what i described above, i did the following performance modifications, and came up with
the following results.
64mm pistons, resulting in a displacement of 718cc and 10.6/1 compression ratio
Stage 2 porting, kibblewhite valve springs, serdi re-cut valve seats by Mike Reick (forum member
MReick)
Megacycle 126-21 cam
Dyna 2000
Trans gears lapped in for reduced drag
520 chain conversion
early style CB750K carbs with K&N pods
balanced crank/ piston/ rotor assembly
mac 4-1 header with 1.5" I.D. glasspacked straight-through baffle
Preliminary (untuned) dyno results
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CB550/CB650 Big Bore Engine
69.7 BHP (182% increase from a stock 550...), and 41# of torque. not bad compared to stock...
I hope someone else takes this project on. The results are incredible, and i can't describe how much more
powerful the engine is. It has all of the low end power and grunt of a CB750, but with the smoothness of a
550. I feel like i can pull out of anything above 30 MPH in any gear i want. Try doing that in 5th gear on
a stock 550...
The End Result
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